Circular-knitting machine.



K. MULLER.

CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 19, 1912.

Patented J an. 5, 1915'.

K. MULLER.

CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED MAB.19.1913,

LWEJWQI. w Patented Jan.5.1915.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

Illlll mantra KENNETH MULLER, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO JENCKES KNITTING MACHINE COMPANY, OF PAWTUGKET, RHODE ISLAND, A. CORPORATION OF RHODE ISLAND.

CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. .5, H1 15.

Application filed March 19, 1913. Serial No. 755,351.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, Knmvnrn MULLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Providence, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode lslandfhaie invented certain new and useful Improvements in Circular-Knitting Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use-the same.

The invention relates to circular knitting machines in which rotary and reciprocatory motion is imparted to the cam cylinder or to the needle cylinder of the knitting head in knitting seamless hosiery.

The object of the invention is to provide novel and improved mechanism for rotating and reciprocating the rotary element of the knitting head, and to this end the invention consists in the features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter described and set forth in the claims.

The invention will be readily understood from an inspection of the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description of the mechanism illustrated therein.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of so much of a circular knitting ma chine as is necessary to illustrate the application of the present invention thereto, and Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the machine.

lln the drawings the invention is shown as embodied in a knitting machine having in general the construction and mode of opera tion of the machine shown and described in Patent No. 806,921, December 19, 1905. linthis machine the knitting head. comprises a stationary needle cylinder indicated at l, and a rotary cam cylinder indicated at 2. The needle cylinder carries the usual series of long and short butt needles, and is CO11- structed and arranged as fully described in the patent above referred to. The cam cylinder is provided with the usual knitting ruins, and with the cams and pickers for operating and controlling the nccdlcs in passing from rotary to lPClplOCiltOl') and back to rotary knitting, and during the re ciprocatory knitting. The cams for throwing the long butt or instep needles into and out of operation at the beginning of the heel and toe, and the pickers ior elfecting the narrowing and widening during the knitting of the heel and toe are similar to the cams and pickers shown and described in Patent No. 570,059, October 27, 1896, and are controlled by cams mounted on a stud on the cam. cylinder and operated by a pawl carry ng arm indicated at 3. The pawl carrying arm is operated at proper intervals by striking a pin 4 mounted to move vertically in the bed plate of the machine, and moved into and out of the path of the arm 3 by cams 5 secured to the cam disk 6 and engaging one arm of a lever 7, the other arm of which is connected to the pin, as fully explained in Patent No. 806,921. The cam disk 6 is intermittently rotated by a pawl 8 carried in a pawl carrying arm '9 and arranged to engage ratchet teeth 10 on the cam disk 6. The devices for causing the cam disk to be given a partial revolution at proper intervals are not shown herein, but are fully shown and described in Patent No. 806,921, and these devices are controlled by the pattern chain 11, as fully disclosed in said patent. The pattern chain is' fed during the operation of the machine by a pawl 12 carried by the pawl carrying arm 9, and operating in the manner fully disclosed in the above patent. The pawl carrying arm 9 is mounted to swing on the stud which supports the cam disk (3 and other parts of the pattern mechanism, and is reciprocated during the operation of the machine by a cam 13 formed on the cam cylinder and arranged to engage a radially movable slide 14 which is connected by a link 15 with the pawl carrying arm. The slide is held in engagement with the cam by a spring 16 connecting the pawl carrying arm with a fixed pin on the base plate of the machine.

in knitting plain seamless hosiery the rotary element of the knitting head (the cam cylinder in the machine above described) must be continuously rotated during the knitting of the legand foot, and must be reciprocated through substantially a com plete revolution in each direction during the knitting of the heel and toe, and as above indicated, the present invention relates to the mechanism for rotating and recipio eating the rotary element of the knitting head, and for changing from one motion to the other. The rotary member of the knitting head is driven by an electric motor which rotates continuously in one direction during rotary knitting, and the rotation of which is reversed at the end of the stroke of the rotary member in each direction during reciprocatory knitting, the means for thus reversing the electric motor being rendered active to change from rotary to reciprocatory knitting, and being rendered inactive to change from reciprocatory to rotary knitting.

In the construction shown, the cam cylinder, which is the rotary element of the knitting head, is provided near its base with a worm wheel 17 engaged by a worm 18 secured to the shaft 19 of an electric mo- .tor 20. During rotary knitting the motor runs in a direction. to rotate the cam cylinder in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 2. TVhe'n the motion is to be changed from rotary to reciprocating, a motor reversing mechanism is rendered active, and operates to reverse the motor afterthe cam cylinder has made substantially a complete revolution in each direction. The reversing mechanism may be of any suitable construction, and may be operated or controlled in any suitable manner. As shown, the reversing mechanism comprises a reversing switch which may be of any wellkuown construction, and which is indicated at 21. The switch is mounted upon a slide 22, and as shown is provided with an 'operating lever 23 which may be moved into or out of the path of an arm 2 L carried by the cam cylinder. The switch carrying slide 22 is moved to bring the operating lever 23 'into or out of the path of the projection 24:, and thus render the reversing mechanism active or inactive by a cam 25 on the cam disk (3. The cam is arranged to act upon a roll 26 carried by a lever 27, the upper end of which is connected by a link 28 with one end of a 'lever'29, the other end of which is connected to the switch carrying slide 22. During rotary knitting the switch carrying slide is retracted so that the switch lever 23 is out of the path of the arm 24, and the revers ing mechanism is therefore inactive. When the motion is to be changed from rotary to reciprocating, the cam disk 6 of the pattern mechanism isgiven a partial revolution, and the cam 25 operates through the connections described to advance the switch carrying slide and bring the switch lever 23 into the path of the arm 24. Now when the arm 24 strikes the lever 23 it swings it toward the right in Fig. 2, and operates the switch to reverse the motor 20. The motion of the cam cylinder is therefore reversed, and the cam cylinder rotates in a direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow, Fig. 2, until the arm 2% strikes the switch lever 23 and swings it toward the left in Fig. 2. This operates the switch to reverse the motor, so that the motion of the cam cylinder is reversed and the cam cylinder rotates in the direction of the arrow, Fig. 2, until the arm 21- again strikes the switch lever 23 and again reverses the motor. The direction of rotation of the motor is thus reversed at the end of the stroke of the cam cylinder in each direction, so that the cam cylinder continues to be reciprocated until the heel or toe has been completed. The cam disk (3 is then given a partial revolution, and the cam 25 withdraws the switch carrying slide, so that the switch lever 23 is withdrawn from the path of the arm 24 and the motor reversing mcchanisn'i thus rendered inactive. The parts are so timed that this occurs while the cam cylinder is rotating in the direction indicated by the arrow, Fig. 2. The motor now continues to drive the cam cylinder in the same direction until the leg or foot of the stocking has been completed and the heel or toe is to be knit, when the re versing mechanism is again rendered active to change the motion of the cam cylinder trom'rotary to reciprocating.

While the invention has been. illustrated as embodied in a machine in which the cam cylinder is the rotary element of the knitting head, it will be understood that it is not confined in its application to such a machine, but may be embodied with equal advantage in machines in which the needle cylinder is the rotary element of the knitting head. It will also be understood that the specific construction and arrangement of parts is not essential to the broader features of the invention, and that they may be varied and modified as found desirable or best suited to the machine in which the invention is to be embodied, without departing from the broader features of the invention.

I-lirvingexplained the nature and object of the invention, and specifically described one form of machine in which it may be eml'iodied, what is claimed is 1. A circular knitting machine, having, in combination, a knitting head including a rotary cylinder, an electric motor con- ,nected to drive the cylinder, motor reversing means, and means for rendering the reversing means active to change from rotary to reciprocatory knitting and for rendering it inactive to change from reciprocatory to rotary knittin 2. A circular Knitting machine, having. in combination, a knitting head including a rotary cylinder, an electric motor connected to drive the cylinder, means operated by the cylinder as it completes its stroke in either direction for reversing the motor,

and means for rendering the reversing means active and inactive to change from rotary to reciprocatory or from reciprocatory to rotary knitting.

niasme 3. A circular knitting machine, having, in combination, a knitting head including a rotary cylinder, an electric motor connected to drive the cylinder, means for reversing the motor as the cylinder completes its stroke in either direction, and a pattern mechanism for rendering the reversing means active or inactive.

4. A circular lmitting machine, having,

in combination, a knitting head including a rotary cylinder, an electric motor connected to drive the cylinder, a motor reversing mechanism including a controlling member on the cylinder, and means for rendering the reversing mechanism active to change from rotary to reciprocatory knitting, and to render it inactive to change from reciprocatory to rotary knitting.

5. A circular' knitting machine, having, in combination, a knitting head including a rotary member, an electric motor connected to drive said member, and means for controlling the motor to rotate or reciprocate said member.

KENNETH MULLER. Witnesses:

M. C. MULLEN, J. W. BAKER.

is I 

